


Even in Death

by Youkoartemis



Series: Zosan Zombie AU [1]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Does that count as cannibalism?, Fluff, Humor, Kinda, Light Angst, M/M, Not Actually Unrequited Love, Not actually character death, Temporary Character Death, Zombie AU, Zombie Characters, Zombies Eating Zombies, and Luffy's masculine nonbinary, but Zoro Usopp and Robin are all trans, it's not explicitly mentioned, temporary major character death, though you may consider it heavier than that
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-25
Updated: 2020-12-25
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:53:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28297065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Youkoartemis/pseuds/Youkoartemis
Summary: The Feral's lips pulled back into a snarl as it finished turning around. It looked directly at Sanji…And stopped.
Relationships: Roronoa Zoro/Sanji
Series: Zosan Zombie AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2072625
Comments: 20
Kudos: 109





	Even in Death

**Author's Note:**

  * For [checkered_soul](https://archiveofourown.org/users/checkered_soul/gifts).



> Potential TW for: Graphic Violence, (Temporary) Character Death, zombies, cannibalism (zombies eating zombies)
> 
> This is a Secret Santa gift for my friend checkered_soul!!! Love ya buddy!!!

Zoro was a man living on borrowed time, and he knew it.

He'd been bitten, after all.

He was going to Turn.

It was just a matter of time.

He glanced over at Sanji, who was bent over his bag, sorting the supplies from their most recent trip. Zoro's lips pursed and he gritted his teeth. He carefully covered up the bite, hiding it from view.

He couldn't worry Sanji with this.

He'd get Sanji somewhere safe, with a group of trustworthy survivors, and then…

He'd disappear.

It was the least he could do for the man who'd been his companion since the apocalypse began.

\-----

Days passed, and Zoro felt the hunger growing. His mind felt like it was swimming, his thoughts turning so slowly.

Fuck, he was _so hungry.  
_

Food did nothing to curb it. He just kept growing hungrier.

It was so hard to think past the hunger…

But he had to stay focused. He _had_ to.

For Sanji's sake.

Zoro stopped sleeping.

Oh, he'd doze, and he'd _pretend_ to sleep, but…

He didn't sleep; he couldn't.

He didn't trust he'd wake up if he did.

It was fine, though: He'd power his way through it. He wouldn't let himself falter. Not until Sanji was safe.

Then…

He'd take care of things.

Things would be fine.

\-----

They came across a group of survivors. It was a surprisingly large group, which was unusual, given the need for stealth to avoid the dead. To say nothing of how much scavenging would need to be done to gather enough supplies for all those people.

They'd met the group while trying to avoid a rather large pack of zombies (and Zoro was very glad that he felt absolutely no urge to join up with packs of the dead...or at least he didn't _yet_ ).

Sanji and Zoro had been pretty successful in sneaking past, sticking to the shadows… when suddenly there was the clatter of metal as someone stumbled over something, followed by a loud-in-the-silence "Whoops!"

And of course, wasn't it _just their luck_ that they happened to be between the alerted zombies and the idiot who'd made the noise?

 _"Luffy!"_ Another voice hissed, appropriately horrified.

The first person just laughed, sounding utterly carefree, and stepped out into view, swinging one arm to loosen it, holding a rather wicked-looking bat with big metal spikes embedded in it.

The person - kid, really, - was wearing an old straw hat, and was _grinning,_ of all things.

"Sorry guys! Looks like we gotta fight!" He laughed.

Zoro and Sanji exchanged silent looks, and then Zoro drew his swords as Sanji prepared himself to throw some truly devastating kicks.

Between all the survivors present, the pack was handled fairly quickly, and Zoro was all set to walk away with Sanji in tow, but then the kid in the straw hat called out to them.

"Hey, you guys are really strong! Wanna join my crew?" He asked with a bright, friendly grin.

The orange-haired girl next to him smacked him upside the head and hissed something at him.

Zoro could already feel the heart eyes Sanji was making at the girl, and had to suppress the almost _violent_ eye roll that threatened to emerge in response, even with his mind as slow and addled by hunger and encroaching death as it was. (He suppressed the bitter jealousy that curdled in his gut, while he was at it.)

"No thanks." Zoro stated bluntly, turning to leave.

Sanji followed, even if he'd hesitated due to wanting to talk to the girl.

That was the first meeting.

It was not the last.

\-----

Eventually, they agreed to join the kid's - Luffy's - crew.

They'd be cautious about it, though. Their history with crews and groups of survivors was… Not Ideal.

Most groups collapsed quickly, due to lack of resources or betrayal, after all.

This crew, though…

The longer they stayed, the more they realized that these Strawhats - as they called themselves - were pretty good people. They even had a main base of operations that looked pretty damn secure! They all worked well together. They were _close._ Clearly liked one another, even if they bickered and squabbled frequently. It reminded Zoro of himself and Sanji, and his heart ached a little.

He was honestly pretty impressed… or he would be, if it wasn't a struggle just to think at all. Emotions felt… distant. Faint. Muddled. Even more than his thoughts, which dragged so slowly, now.

He leaned against the wall of the area he and Sanji had been given, struggling to put his thoughts in order so he could speak.

"They're good people." He began, slowly and purposefully. It was the only way he could speak, nowadays. Words were... hard.

"Yeah, they are, aren't they?" Sanji mused, smoking a cigarette for pretty much the first time since the outbreak began. (Smoking was a bad habit to have when the dead were capable of tracking the smell, after all.)

"Could be good for us." Zoro said, tossing the idea out.

Sanji gave him a bit of an odd look, arching one curly eyebrow. It was unfairly attractive, but the rush of warmth Zoro felt was muted. He was so tired. Everything was cold and numb.

But he had to keep going for Sanji. Just for a little bit longer.

Just until he was safe.

Zoro blinked and dragged his mind back to the present. It took more effort than he'd ever admit.

"...ing we should stick around?" Sanji asked, sounding mildly surprised, "Aren't you usually the one saying not to trust other survivors?"

Zoro forced his shoulders to shrug. Did his best to make it look casual.

"Never met ones like this." He replied.

"Mm, true." Sanji acknowledged, breathing out another cloud of smoke, eyes closing blissfully as he inhaled another dose of nicotine.

Zoro's heart warmed just a little at the sight of his contentment, and the hunger became just a tiny bit less of a struggle to ignore.

"Would be nice not to have to watch our backs so closely anymore." The cook mused, "To be able to sleep with both eyes closed…"

Zoro grunted in agreement, letting his heavy eyes close, just for a little.

He waited until he heard Sanji's breathing even out in sleep, then slipped out of the area, using every bit of the stealth he'd learned over the years so as not to wake his partner. (And oh, how he wished he could say that in more ways than just survival…but now he never would.)

Since he was going to die anyway, Zoro supposed he could admit, if only to himself, that he'd been in love with Sanji for years. Since even _before_ they began working together during the apocalypse. After they started spending all their time together as a team, working to survive… Well.

He knew he was a hopeless case. He'd known that since the first time he saw Sanji cave a zombie's head in with a single kick.

But of course it _was_ hopeless, because the blond had never hidden the fact that he adored women. That he craved them, loved them, thought they were the most beautiful and perfect beings to ever exist. He'd gotten over his infatuation and chivalrous bullshit enough to fight female zombies, but.

That didn't change the fact Zoro never stood a chance, simply due to his gender.

And it burned.

Even now, as numb and cold and exhausted as he was… It tasted so bitter.

But he supposed it didn't matter anymore.

He was dying, after all.

Still, it had been a pretty good life, zombies aside.

Zoro had no regrets.

...Well, that wasn't quite true. He regretted that he had to leave Sanji like this, in the dead of night, slinking off like a thief to die somewhere so he wouldn't risk hurting him.

He met Luffy along the way.

"...You're not coming back, are you?" The boy asked, unusually serious.

Zoro paused, then decided he may as well admit it.

He pulled up his sleeve, exposing the bite, which was red, and swollen, the deep wounds standing out starkly, even in the dim night lighting.

"Was bitten." He admitted. He was _so tired,_ "Promise me you'll take care of him?"

He turned to pin as intense a stare onto the boy as he could.

Luffy nodded once, firm and serious.

"I promise we'll take good care of Sanji, Zoro." He swore.

Zoro knew Luffy would do everything in his power to keep that promise. Even though he'd only known the man for a couple of days, he could tell that he was a man of his word.

So Zoro nodded once and turned away, lumbering off into the dark.

He'd done all he could.

Now… He'd rest.

Sanji was as safe as he'd ever be.

Zoro could let go now.

He could finally-

\-----

Sanji woke up alone.

Sanji woke up alone, and saw Zoro's swords and haramaki, but no Zoro.

Sanji saw Zoro's swords, and panicked.

He rushed out, only to be stopped by Luffy and the others, who shared the news.

Sanji's world fell out from under his feet.

Zoro had been bitten.

Zoro had been bitten and he _hadn't told Sanji.  
_

He'd _hidden_ it from him.

Sanji wanted to feel betrayed, but he _knew_ Zoro, and Sanji had _noticed_ that Zoro was behaving oddly.

He'd been eating less. Sleeping less. Slowly growing paler and paler and increasingly gaunt, the shadows under his eyes deepening constantly. He'd always been so _exhausted,_ and had been getting more and more sluggish and spoke less and less.

Sanji had known he'd been hiding something… but he had never expected it was that he was _DYING._

But he supposed he should have: The damn marimo bastard had always been the stupid, self-sacrificing sort.

Sanji let out a thin, keening wail of utter devastation and rapidly fled to break down somewhere more isolated.

He didn't stop crying until his body literally had no tears left to give.

And then he cried some more.

\-----

It took time, but Sanji pulled himself back together, and began integrating into the Strawhat crew.

They really _were_ good people… but they weren't Zoro. Not even the beautiful Nami-san and Robin-chan could make up for that.

Couldn't fill the hole that damn mosshead left behind with his death.

Still… Sanji kept moving forward, one step at a time.

\-----

Sanji was out scavenging in an old mall center with Usopp when it happened. He caught a flash of green out of the corner of his eye and turned to look…

His eyes widened.

It was _Zoro!_

Sanji froze, staring at the form of his partner with wide eyes.

He couldn't believe it. Usopp was tugging on his arm, hissing that it was just a zombie, and they needed to keep moving, but Sanji couldn't focus on any of it.

"Zoro…?" He asked out loud in a trembling voice.

Zoro's form jerked slightly at the sound, and the quiet growl of an alerted zombie came from his direction as he slowly turned towards Sanji. His right eye seemed to be glowing red in the dim lighting, and Sanji's heart stopped, blood turning to ice in his veins.

A Feral.

Zoro had become a _Feral._

Sanji dimly registered that Usopp had left him to go hide, and Sanji couldn't blame him: Ferals were even more terrifying than the average zombie.

See, all zombies could move fairly fast and do some basic obstacle evasion and clambering, but Ferals?

Ferals were much, _much_ faster, and capable of far more agility. An average zombie couldn't climb ladders, leap across gaps, or vault over obstacles, but Ferals could.

Ferals were also far _stronger_ than the average zombie, being able to smash through wooden walls and even thick, heavy doors with relative ease. To say nothing of how easily they could tear through _people.  
_

They took more hits to put down than an average zombie, too.

All things considered, it was really no surprise a single Feral could take down entire groups of survivors.

And Sanji had just unthinkingly attracted one's attention.

The Feral's lips pulled back into a snarl as it finished turning around. It looked directly at Sanji…

And stopped.

Its face went blank, and it stopped growling. All signs of aggression gone.

It just… _Stared_ at Sanji.

Since it had Zoro's face, even as pale and covered in blood as it was… Sanji couldn't help reading the creature's expression as… "Confused." The dumb incomprehension on its face was _exactly_ like the times when Zoro hadn't understood something.

It made Sanji's heart hurt.

He missed Zoro **_so much._** _  
_

But this thing wasn't Zoro, even if it wore his face.

...Even if it didn't rush to attack Sanji like any other zombie.

...Even if it just _stared_ at him like a lost mossball, completely docile as it blinked dumbly at him.

 _'It's… actually almost kinda cute,'_ Sanji grudgingly admitted to himself, _'But only 'cause it used to be a dumb, gooey-centered marimo.'_

And then Usopp attracted its attention on accident, trying to avoid a different zombie.

The Feral _immediately_ turned hostile, like the flipping of a switch, bloody teeth bared and a loud snarl rising in its throat.

It _howled_ and began to rush at Usopp, who panicked.

On instinct, Sanji threw himself between the Feral and Usopp.

"Stop!" Sanji demanded, and, miraculously…

It did.

It skidded to a halt right in front of him, so close he could _smell_ the rotting flesh and old blood on it. Its eyes bored right into his, and at this range, Sanji noticed that its left eye was a filmy, milky white with a cut running through it, from above its eyebrow to halfway down its cheek.

The other eye was the same as Zoro's. The same, painfully familiar whiskey brown that Sanji had always secretly adored. It wasn't red. At this range, Sanji could see that it had only _looked_ red due to light reflecting off the blown-wide pupil.

Sanji felt the Feral's tepid, rotting breath on his face, and found himself surprised: He hadn't expected a zombie to breathe.

It once more went completely docile, upon facing Sanji, its face going lax and snarl tapering off into silence, other than some very soft gurgling as it breathed.

It tilted its head slightly while regarding him, and it was such a _Zoro_ gesture that Sanji's breathing stuttered as his throat seized in grief.

"Zoro…" He murmured, heartbroken. His vision was blurring.

The Feral let out a very soft rumble, as though in response. It almost sounded like it had _crooned_ to him.

There was a gurgling snarl from another zombie, which had been drawn by the Feral's enraged howl at Usopp before Sanji had somehow calmed it.

Sanji and Usopp froze, staring at it in horror.

It snarled and rushed towards them, but the Feral suddenly let out an enraged snarl of its own and barreled forward to meet the other zombie halfway.

The Feral grabbed the other zombie and _slammed_ it down, **_hard._ ** The Feral grabbed the other zombie by the face and slammed its head against the ground, hard enough to crack it open in an eruption of gore. The other zombie immediately went limp in final death.

The Feral began gorging on the dead zombie's flesh, scooping out handfuls of its brains and shoving them in its mouth, chewing loudly.

It was sickening.

Usopp let out a gurgling burp, clearly fighting back bile. Unfortunately, the sound, while quite soft, was still enough to draw the Feral's attention.

It turned to look over its right shoulder, eye gleaming red. It growled, deep and terrifying.

Sanji stepped in front of Usopp once more, arms held out, blocking the sniper from view, and, once again…

The Feral went docile.

Once was random, twice was coincidence, but three times was a _pattern._

"Zoro?" Sanji asked carefully, wondering if maybe, just _maybe,_ the man he loved (and after he'd lost the man he'd _finally_ been able to admit that fact to himself) was still in there, somewhere.

The Feral's head tilted slightly to the side at Sanji's question, its brow furrowing slightly. The faint frown cleared up and it blinked once, rocking back slightly on its heels then forward and up to its feet in one smooth motion.

Just like Zoro had always done.

The Feral turned and walked over to stand near Sanji, then tilted its head slightly to the left, as though waiting. The gesture drew Sanji's attention to the fact it still had all three of Zoro's stupid earrings (even if they were actually pretty cool; Sanji had simply refused to ever acknowledge it).

Sanji… had no idea what to do now, and it was clear Usopp didn't, either.

"Umm…. Sanji... _eep!"_ Usopp squeaked when his soft words drew the Feral's attention and made it start snarling like a rabid dog.

"Zoro, _no."_ The words came out before Sanji could think about it.

The Feral paused mid-snarl, an odd expression twisting upon its bloody face. Its brow furrowed in a way Sanji recognized as Zoro's "this was unexpected and I'm not sure how to handle it" look.

Its eyes narrowed at Usopp a moment later and it bared its bloodstained teeth at him, a growl once more rising from it.

 _"No."_ Sanji repeated firmly, causing it to pause once more, looking puzzled.

It turned to him with a frown, tilting its head. It actually looked vaguely outraged.

 _"No,_ Zoro." Sanji repeated once more, wondering what the fuck he was doing and how this was his life.

The Feral let out an honest-to-God _whine_ in response to that, actually _pouting._

"No, you _cannot_ eat Usopp."

The Feral let out a grumbling sound _exactly_ like Zoro always had when denied "fun" by Sanji, but it stopped growling at Usopp.

"Good… zombie…?" Sanji praised uncertainly, getting a blank and unimpressed stare in response, "What the fuck am I even doing…?" He added in a mutter under his breath.

The Feral gave one slow blink and then pressed forward, pressing its blood-covered face into his neck.

"Oi oi oi!" He yelped, pressing his palms against the bastard's chest, ready to push it away, only…

It wasn't trying to bite him.

It was _nuzzling_ him.

Sanji's hands fell back down to his sides in his shock.

 _"Zombie whisperer…"_ Usopp murmured in awe behind him.

The Feral looked up at him, chin resting on Sanji's shoulder and growled softly in warning.

"Okay! Okay! Sorry!" Usopp yelped quietly, backing away.

The growling stopped, and the Feral huffed softly.

"Alright, back up. Personal space, you Feral bastard." Sanji grumbled, pushing the zombie back.

It obligingly stepped back, but seemed to be sulking about it.

"Sanji, we should get going before anything else gets interested in what's going on." Usopp pointed out, and Sanji sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, I know." He agreed, shooting one final, sad look at the Feral zombie Zoro had turned into before turning and beginning to head back with Usopp.

The Feral followed.

"Uhhhhh Sanji? _It's following us!"_ Usopp hissed, understandably terrified.

But… It didn't seem to be hostile. It wasn't hunting or chasing, just… _Following._

"I know. It'll probably stop following us as we exit the building." Sanji said back, equally quiet. Ferals _hated_ bright lights; it was the only thing that could slow them down.

Losing their tail was a _good_ thing, but… Sanji felt a harsh pang of grief and guilt at his own words, as though he were somehow abandoning _Zoro,_ and not just the _thing_ wearing his skin.

They reached the exit, and headed out, and sure enough the Feral hesitated at the threshold, wincing at the bright light of the daytime sun.

It did not follow them.

\-----

Leaving? Gone? Follow?

LIGHT.

TOO LIGHT.

**PAIN.**

Going?

Left?

Gone.

Gonegonegonegonegone

Why gone?

Wait.

Will wait.

\-----

Waiting.

**HUNGER.**

MOVEMENT.

Bad Meat.

**_HUNGER._ **

KILL.

RIP.

TEAR.

EAT.

Eat Bad Meat.

**STILL HUNGER.**

No leave.

Wait.

Will wait.

For him.

Forever.

\-----

Sanji returned to the shopping center where he'd seen what Zoro had become.

To be perfectly honest, he'd been avoiding the place. He… really didn't want to see what had become of the man he'd loved so dearly and lost.

But it was one of the biggest places to scavenge for supplies in, so he returned.

There, by the entrance, he caught sight of a flash of red, and turned to look -

It was the Feral. Sitting cross legged on a pile of debris, hands resting in its lap in front of it. Sanji actually had to do a double take, because Zoro had always sat _exactly like that_ any time they'd had a bit of quiet time to rest, in whatever bolthole they'd found or made for the night. If it had just had Zoro's swords held in front of it…

It looked directly at him, and seemed to sit a bit straighter before standing up and moving towards him.

Sanji stayed still, wary of its mood turning on him, but it was showing no hostility (yet), so he couldn't really say he was _afraid._ (How could he be afraid of Zoro? The man who had saved his life so many times over the years? The man who'd been bitten while saving his dumb ass and _hid_ it for _weeks_ until he'd gotten Sanji somewhere safe. The man who'd left his greatest treasures - his beloved _swords_ \- to Sanji before he'd gone off to _die.)_

"Oh hey! It's Zoro!" Luffy said, remarkably unbothered, "He must've been waiting for you!"

...Was that it? Had this thing been waiting for Sanji?

But why?

The Feral snarled at Luffy, immediately turning hostile after catching sight of a human that wasn't Sanji.

"Zoro." Luffy said more seriously, adjusting his hat, "I kept my promise, and I'm gonna _keep_ keeping it."

The Feral… _paused._ It stopped mid-growl, an odd expression appearing on its face. Its eyes were widened slightly, making it look almost… _puppyish._

It blinked at Luffy, looking honestly rather bemused.

Nami-san, brilliant woman that she was, chose to stand behind Sanji, where the Feral couldn't see her. (Ah, she was so lovely and brilliant~!)

"Hey, hey, zombie Zoro!" Luffy exclaimed, starting to grin his trademark grin, "You should join my crew!"

 _"Luffy!"_ Sanji and Nami chorused, both shocked and appalled as they gaped at their captain (Luffy _insisted_ on the title, even though they weren't sailors, no matter _how_ much Sanji might or might not swear like one).

"What??" He asked, turning to them with wide eyes, "I wanted _human_ Zoro to join, and he couldn't, and it wasn't _fair,_ and it'd be _so cool_ to have a zombie friend! Even **_cooler_ ** that he's Zoro!! And maybe Chopper can find a way to make him better!"

He paused to give Sanji a knowing look.

"If there's a chance you can get Zoro back… Don't you wanna take it?" 

Sanji flinched.

That. Was _such_ a low blow.

 _"Luffy…"_ Sanji growled, clenching his teeth and glaring.

Whatever Sanji had planned to say next was interrupted when the Feral suddenly snarled furiously and glared evilly at Luffy, teeth bared. It looked **_ravenous._ **

"Oi oi calm down, you shitty moss!" Sanji said, eyes wide with alarm.

The Feral snorted and turned its gaze upon him, looking pretty damn peeved with him.

It made a harsh, guttural sound, then paused, as though thinking.

"K- Kuhrr-leeee." It spat out, and that sounded…

An awful lot like a _word._

"...What did you say?" Sanji asked incredulously, eyes even wider, but this time in astonishment.

"Kuhr-lee." It repeated, with a pointed glance at Sanji's visible eyebrow.

Sanji's jaw dropped.

He could not _fucking_ believe this!

"You fucking **_die,_ ** somehow manage to hang onto a part of your brain, and all you use it for is to _insult_ me?!" He demanded, more incredulous than actually angry.

The fucker _snickered_ at him!

The absolute _dickhead_ was **_LAUGHING_ ** at him!!!

"You. Are _definitely_ that mossheaded bastard, and the moss has _clearly_ finally reached all the way to your pea brain and infected it!" Sanji declared, jabbing a finger at the bastard Feral, "Can't believe I actually fucking _missed_ you, you **_asshole."_ ** Sanji was _not_ crying! There was just dust in his eyes!

The Feral - no, there was no use in denying it any longer: this was _Zoro -_ stopped snickering and looked something approaching _concerned._ He rumbled softly and stepped closer, lightly butting his head against Sanji's chin. He blinked up at Sanji, a small frown creating a furrow in his brow. Sanji recognized it as Zoro's worried frown.

He sighed and patted the zombie on the head, nose wrinkling at the greasy, tacky, disgusting feeling of it.

"If you come with us, you're getting a bath…" A sniff, followed by a grimace at the stench, "...or ten."

Zoro blinked placidly at him, showing no sign that he understood what Sanji had just said.

"Are you guys _sure_ about this…?" Nami asked, sounding concerned.

Zoro's gaze snapped over to her, but Sanji kicked him in the ankle before he could do more than curl his lips back at her.

"Dont you _dare_ snarl at Nami-san, you mossbrained jackass!" Sanji hissed at him, glaring.

Zoro snarled and snapped his teeth at him, glaring, but subsided.

"Good moss." Sanji praised, honestly feeling kind of ridiculous.

Zoro let out a snort in response. Sanji supposed _he_ thought so, too.

"Zoro! Join my crew!" Luffy repeated, beaming at the zombie.

Said zombie bared his bloodstained teeth at the man, letting out a deep, bone chilling growl. He leaned forward slightly, clearly preparing to attack.

Sanji quickly grabbed his shoulder, pressing down to try and pause the attack.

"Zoro _no."_ He ordered, and the zombie his partner had become growled again, but still once more stood down.

He continued to stare hungrily at Luffy and Nami, however.

Sanji frowned, stomach twisting.

"Are you… hungry?" He asked slowly.

Zoro growled again, this time distinctly more gurgly, and strands of drool ran down his chin. He looked _utterly ravenous._

Sanji's stomach twisted in sympathy.

He wondered if zombies could even eat regular food, or if it had to be fresh….or at least _uncooked,_ he mentally amended, recalling that Zoro had eaten another zombie, once.

Sanji couldn't believe he was about to ask this, but…

"Do you even _want_ to come with us…?" He asked Zoro skeptically, frowning slightly.

Zoro chose to respond by turning towards Sanji and gently bumping him with his head, and repeated "Kuhrlee" before adding "Kuuk."

Sanji couldn't help melting just a little bit at the fact that Zoro really _was_ clearly still in there, somewhere. Probably fighting his way back to the surface, knowing the mossbrained idiot. He couldn't resist patting the zombie's head, even though his hair was _still_ absolutely disgusting. Much like the rest of him, honestly. He _desperately_ needed a wash. Or twenty.

Zoro ended up tailing them through the shopping center as they scavenged around. Specifically, he tailed _Sanji_ around - he still snarled and attempted to attack Luffy and Nami if he saw them, forcing Sanji to frantically rein him in.

Seemed his memory wasn't very long, which Sanji supposed was fair enough, considering Zoro was _dead._

(Beneath the grime, his skin was oddly warm for a dead man's, though…)

Eventually, they gathered up all that they dared to for the day, and so they headed back to the exit before the sun could begin setting and leave them vulnerable to Ferals crawling out of the woodwork to haunt the streets.

Once again, Zoro paused at the threshold, wincing at the bright light of the sun, but this time, Sanji and the others waited to see what he'd do.

They were not disappointed, as, a couple seconds later, Zoro stepped out and made his way over to Sanji's side, and resumed following the man like a lost puppy. (A lost and very much _**rabid** _ puppy.)

\-----

They got him back to their base, and Sanji immediately had to work to keep him from attacking everyone around him.

"No! Bad Zoro! No eating people!" Sanji scolded, yanking Zoro back by the shoulders. He grabbed firm hold of one of Zoro's wrists and dragged him to his room to grab some spare clothes, and then to the bathroom to hose the zombie down.

After they entered the bathroom, Sanji closed and locked the door while Zoro calmly watched with a tilted head.

Sanji approached the Feral and tugged on his shirt.

"Take this off." Sanji ordered, stripping off the zombie's shirt.

Zoro stared wide eyed at him, clearly not comprehending what was going on but willing to go along with it.

Sanji helped him strip out of the rest of his clothes, glad that Zoro had left the haramaki behind (Zoro loved that thing, and it would've been a damn shame to have to get rid of it for being unsavably filthy).

With Zoro now out of the filthy, stained with blood and who-knew-what-else clothing, Sanji stripped out of his own clothes. He fully intended to clean himself off at the same time as he washed Zoro. It wasn't like they hadn't been naked around each other plenty of times in the past to change, bathe, and manage wounds, after all. It honestly didn't even register to Sanji, at this point.

And then Sanji turned on the shower, and Zoro shoved himself against the wall away from the water, hissing, his eyes wide.

"What?" Sanji asked, perplexed, "It's just water!"

Zoro hissed louder, struggling away when Sanji tried to pull him closer to the water. He growled and snarled at the water pouring from the shower head, looking like a spooked cat.

Watching the zombie huddle under the sink across from the shower, Sanji rubbed his chin and tried to figure things out. It really seemed like Zoro was _afraid_ of the water.

"Do you… not remember what water is?" He asked, frowning.

Zoro bared his teeth at the shower and hissed.

Sanji moved closer to the shower and Zoro _whined,_ reaching forward and tugging at Sanji, trying to pull him away.

That clinched it: Zoro _was_ afraid of the water!

Now Sanji just needed to prove that it wasn't harmful.

"No, look, see? It's just water; it can't hurt you." Sanji soothed, holding one of his arms under the spray to prove to Zoro that it wasn't harmful.

The zombie made a pensive, mistrustful sound, but cautiously inched closer, staring in concern at Sanji's arm. He turned his anxious gaze towards Sanji's face, as though seeking reassurance.

Sanji reached over with his wet hand and patted Zoro's head, causing the zombie to recoil with a sputtered snarl, shaking his head.

Sanji laughed, grinning.

"You should've seen your _face…!"_ He cackled, holding his stomach as he laughed.

Zoro paused, staring at him in something akin to awe. He once more approached closer, snuffling softly.

Sanji smiled softly at him, taking hold of one of his hands.

"C'mon, marimo: Let's get you cleaned off."

Thankfully, this time, the zombie let Sanji pull him into the shower. He flinched briefly when the water first hit him, but, at the lack of pain, Zoro relaxed and pressed himself further into the spray.

Sanji pulled him back and began cleaning him off, scrubbing hard to get all the gunk and grime off of him.

At the end of it, as Sanji toweled Zoro dry, he found that… Zoro…. Didn't really look all that _dead._ His skin wasn't ashen: It was just a bit paler, like he hadn't been out in the sun for a while. His skin was warm to the touch, too. A bit feverish, even.

Sanji frowned in thought, and pressed two fingers at the corner of Zoro's jaw, at the side of his neck, checking for a pulse.

He didn't feel anything, but it wasn't like Zoro was staying still for it, either, twisting and squirming about while looking around and shaking his head to try and get the water out of his hair.

A difficult patient, to be sure.

Without all the grime on him, Sanji finally saw the bite on his left bicep. It looked angry and red. Not _infected,_ but certainly not happy, either. He couldn't help reaching out and brushing his fingers over the partially healed wound… but Zoro jerked away from the touch, snapping his teeth in the direction of Sanji's fingers and growling.

No touching that injury. Noted.

\-----

Getting Zoro to stop snarling and attempting to attack the others was… a work in progress. At least he was willing to listen to Sanji...most of the time.

He absolutely _refused_ to eat vegetables or cooked foods, though. Would turn his nose up at them and lean away when they were offered to him. He would eat raw meat, though. He'd even eat meat that Sanji had cooked to be rare and bloody, though with noticeably less enthusiasm than he did raw meat (Sanji tried not to feel insulted).

Sanji was currently working on getting Zoro to try eating other types of food, because he could _tell_ that Zoro was hungry. It was written all over the way he was eying the others with increasingly desperate hunger. In the way he was growing more and more agitated when Sanji held him back and ordered him to stop. The way he was starting to snap and snarl at _Sanji_ when held back from attacking the others.

Finally, Zoro _did_ eat what Sanji offered him, desperately hungry enough he'd eat _anything._ He didn't look _pleased_ about eating non-meat food, but he still ate it, and willingly began eating other things Sanji offered him.

It didn't seem to help much, though, so Sanji took him out to go look for food that Zoro _would_ eat.

Turned out, Zoro would willingly eat other zombies, judging from how he perked up and began _drooling_ upon sight of the movement of another zombie.

Sanji did not hold Zoro back, and Zoro charged forward with an alarming amount of speed, tackling the unfortunate zombie to the ground and savagely tearing into it, ripping flesh from bone with hands and teeth. The sight was horrifying, but Sanji couldn't tear his eyes away from it.

When Zoro finally finished eating, his victim was little more than a broken pile of slightly bloody bones; Zoro had even cracked open its bones to get at the marrow inside of them.

Zoro did _finally_ look satisfied, though, licking the last bits of blood off of his face wherever his tongue could reach, and then lapping at the blood on his fingers and arms like a cat. His eyes were half-lidded with lazy contentment.

He tilted his head at Sanji, curious as to what they'd be doing next.

Sanji took a deep breath and decided that they might as well go scavenging for supplies while they were out and about, so he led the zombie around some abandoned buildings, looking for anything that might be of use.

Zoro killed several other zombies, but did not gorge as thoroughly upon them as he had upon that first one, taking only a few bites from each. Particularly focusing on brain matter, for whatever reason.

When they returned, Zoro was apparently satisfied enough that he didn't offer more than the mildest of growls at the others.

Taking Zoro out to hunt became something Sanji did every couple of days, after that.

\-----

Zoro was Very Determined to not be separated from Sanji. He followed Sanji _everywhere,_ no matter what.

One time, without thinking, Sanji let a metal door close behind him, cutting Zoro off from following him.

Almost immediately, the sound of something heavy slamming into the metal door was heard, causing Sanji to look back. Another impact. And another.

The door **_dented._ **

The thick, metal door **_DENTED,_ ** beginning to buckle at the point of impact.

There was the screech of protesting metal as the hinges began pulling loose, and then, with one final, thunderous **BAM** … The door collapsed to the floor with a resounding **CLANG**. Zoro stepped over it, shaking his head a bit, as though shaking off lingering dizziness, before trotting over to Sanji's side. He looked pleased and satisfied as he bumped his head against Sanji's shoulder, nuzzling his cheek against the chef's collarbone. He huffed softly, content.

The others all peeked in to see what was going on, and Sanji could do nothing but offer them a wide eyed look of bewilderment.

The event reoccurred with a wooden door when Sanji unthinkingly closed it behind himself: Zoro busted through it with a violent fervor, wild eyed and snarling until he saw Sanji and trotted over to him to lightly headbutt him, looking content.

A new rule was created: Always make sure Zoro was on the same side of a door as Sanji.

\-----

Eventually, Zoro stopped reacting with hostility towards the others entirely. It started with Luffy: Zoro stopped growling at him pretty early on, and instead just huffed at him, tolerating his shenanigans. He let Luffy climb on him and chatter at him. He didn't say much in return, but Zoro had never really spoken much, even when he was human.

Nowadays, he seemed to treat them all similarly to how he treated Sanji: No hostility, would follow them about, and would generally listen to them if they asked him to do something.

"Friends." Zoro had said, when asked, more focused on attempting to solve the puzzle box he'd been handed by Usopp, "Follow."

"Perhaps this is the source of the "pack" instinct that zombies have?" Robin had mused, leaning forward to peer at Zoro with interest.

"Family." Zoro said, seeming to agree with Robin's assessment as he focused on the puzzle box he'd been given as a test for his mental and manual dexterity.

"Wait. Are you saying zombies group together because they're friends?" Usopp asked, staring wide eyed at Zoro, who bobbed his head once.

"Know." He agreed.

"Wait wait wait! Are you saying the zombies _recognize_ each other??" Nami asked, shocked.

 _"Know."_ Zoro repeated, actually looking up from the box in his hands to shoot her a somewhat frustrated look.

"Like Zoro did with Sanji." Chopper realized, speaking softly, eyes huge.

"So. Zombie packs are each other's families?" Luffy asked.

"Some." Zoro agreed, focusing on the puzzle once more, frowning in concentration. He made a sound of satisfaction as he got a panel completed, then grumbled and scowled when he realized he'd need to figure out the next side of the puzzle to get at the treat hidden inside.

"If zombie packs're all friends and family, then that explains why they get so pissed if you hurt or kill one of 'em." Franky noted. He and Brook then began to dramatically sob over how touching it was that bonds like that remained so strong even after death.

The others chose to ignore this.

Zoro stared incomprehendingly at the pair, then snorted softly and returned his attention to the puzzle.

Inwardly, the humans in the group all wondered how much more was really going on beneath the surface of zombies. They wondered if the zombies were truly just "monsters" like they seemed on the surface. Zoro was _remarkably_ human, if extremely simple-minded, after all...

\-----

Once Zoro stopped turning aggressive on him, Chopper began running some basic tests upon Zoro, trying to figure out how the zombie virus worked, now that he had access to a "live" subject.

That was how they discovered that Zoro actually _did_ have a pulse.

He had a pulse, he breathed, his internal organs functioned...

Zoro was _alive._

He was a zombie, but he was _alive._

And if _Zoro_ was alive… It mostly likely meant that _all_ zombies were.

"But _how?"_ Chopper cried out, frustrated as he tried to figure out what, exactly, the zombie virus did to people.

Zoro's temperature was higher than the human baseline by several degrees. His cells divided _bizarrely_ fast, according to Chopper.

"It's like everything about his body is in overdrive." Chopper had mentioned, frowning and wringing his hands, "His cells are dividing so fast they don't remain stable, and so they mutate and break down, but everything remains _just_ stable enough that he keeps functioning."

"But he's _definitely_ dumber than he was when he was human." Sanji stated, watching Zoro struggle with a fairly simple puzzle.

"I'd have to take brain tissue samples to be certain - and obviously I can't do that - but my _hypothesis_ is that the virus causes degradation of the neural connections in the brain, over time." Chopper said while writing down the results of the latest tests he'd put Zoro through.

"What's interesting, though, is how Zoro's higher brain functions have improved _drastically_ compared to where he was at when he first arrived." Chopper added, looking both fascinated and frustrated, "I just can't quite figure out _why."_

"Well, I'm sure you'll figure it out; you're the best doctor in the apocalypse, after all." Sanji said with an encouraging smile, ruffling the boy's hair.

Chopper wriggled in place, looking delighted.

"Your compliments mean nothing to me, you bastard~!"

\-----

Zoro continued to slowly improve, becoming more and more like he had been prior to getting turned. When Sanji saw him taking his swords out of their sheaths to start cleaning them, he nearly cried. It was such a return to normal Zoro behavior! Something he hadn't seen in _so long!  
_

He still wasn't _using_ them, but he was beginning to look after them again, and it was proof that Zoro really _could_ recover! He was getting _better!!!_

\-----

"You and Zoro are going out hunting, right?" Chopper asked one day.

"Yeah." Zoro answered. He'd been growing more and more talkative, lately, and it warmed Sanji's heart to see the man he loved coming back from the grave.

"Before you go, can I take a few blood samples?" The little doctor requested, "And I'd like to take a few samples after you get back; I want to check something."

Zoro blinked once and tilted his head briefly before righting it and giving a careless shrug.

"Sure." He agreed, kneeling down to let the doctor draw a couple vials of blood.

The little doctor beamed at him.

"Thank you, Zoro!" And he scampered back to his lab.

Zoro watched him go with a small smile.

\-----

They returned, and Chopper drew a couple more blood samples.

At dinner, Chopper announced his findings.

"It turns out I was right! The virus is _regenerative!"_ Chopper exclaimed excitedly, eyes wide and as bright as his grin.

"So it's _healing_ him?" Robin asked, focusing intently on the doctor.

"Yes, and while I'd have to find the original research on the virus to be _fully_ certain, I feel safe in saying it was _probably_ meant to be used for speeding up healing! The regeneration speed of Zoro's cells is _incredible,_ after all! But, what's _most_ interesting is: This _only_ happens after he's eaten another zombie! Otherwise his cells slowly break down over time, which is where the "decaying" of zombies comes from!! And how they can still be "alive" in spite of the horrible wounds they sustain! The virus keeps them _just_ regenerated enough to remain functional, even as everything breaks down and degrades over time!"

"And that's why Zoro's getting less zombie-like now that he's eating zombies." Sanji realized.

"Exactly!!!!" Chopper exclaimed, excitedly waving one hand around.

"But how does that work?" Nami asked, frowning just a bit skeptically.  
  
"I'm not entirely sure, but my hypothesis is that the virus is "incomplete" in its purpose! It's _meant_ to speed up the healing of terrible injuries, but instead it slowly breaks down over time. I think that it "revitalizes" with an additional dose of itself."

"But why do they attack those who aren't infected?" Usopp asked.

It was Zoro who answered, this time.

"Hungry." He said, speaking slowly, words clipped and pronounced very gutturally, as had become the norm for him after becoming a zombie, _"So_ hungry. Can't think past the hunger."

"But why only those who aren't infected?" Usopp asked again.

"Smell it. Fresh. Tasty." Zoro answered, looking hungry at just the _thought._

"Perhaps it's like rabies?" Robin mused, tapping her chin with one finger, "It _wants_ to spread, so it makes the host prioritize those who are not infected."

"Good meat an' bad meat." Zoro said, giving a bob of his head in agreement.

"I presume zombies are the "bad meat?"" Robin asked.

"Mm." Zoro agreed, "Smell bad. Taste bad."

"But you eat it anyway."

 **_"Hungry."_ ** Zoro repeated, putting heavy emphasis on the word, as though trying to impress just how _powerful_ the sensation was upon them.

"Are you hungry right now, Zoro?" Sanji asked, frowning slightly.

"Always hungry." Zoro stated, _"Always."_

Before Sanji could start feeling any guilt over not feeding Zoro enough, the recovering zombie continued.

"Doesn' matter how much, 'r how often." He said slowly, frowning as he forced his brain to put all the words together, "Still hungry. _Always_ hungry." He looked up at Sanji, vaguely apologetic, "Less, now."

"But you're still hungry." Sanji said, still upset that he wasn't doing his job as a chef and keeping everyone fed properly.

"Always." Zoro said softly, "Wouldn' change, even if fed more."

Zoro reached over and patted Sanji's hand, looking apologetic.

"Doin' good job, Curly." He added.

Sanji nodded, smiling weakly.

"Thanks, marimo." He said softly, doing his best to accept the offered comfort for what it was.

Zoro nodded and patted Sanji's hand once more, leaning over to gently bump his shoulder against Sanji's, and Sanji's heart _melted_ at how sweet he was.

"You can cure it, right Chopper?" Luffy asked, drawing Sanji's attention back to the conversation at hand.

"Well, I still have a lot more work to do figuring out how the virus works, but with Zoro's help I'm _certain_ I'll do it! I'm already _really_ close!" The doctor said, looking extremely optimistic.

"And Zoro'll help, right Zoro?" Luffy asked, turning to Zoro with a grin.

Zoro nodded.

"Great!!!" Luffy exclaimed, "Then it's gonna be cured in no time!!!"

\-----

It still took roughly another month to create what Chopper was tentatively willing to call a cure. He'd tested it on several samples of tissue and blood from Zoro, and it cleared up the infection in them, forcing the virus to go into overdrive fixing whatever damage had been caused before essentially "burning out" and destroying itself, leaving only clean, healthy cells behind.

Chopper tested it on a larger sample, and saw the same results, so he offered it to Zoro.

Zoro accepted, and Sanji remained at his side for it.

Chopper took the needle containing the cure he'd formulated, and pressed it slowly and carefully into a vein near the bite wound that had started it all, injecting the contents.

Zoro twitched slightly, brow furrowing. He jerked his head to one side, snapping his teeth once, then gritting them. He hunched over slightly, then sat back up straighter, and shook his arm, as though trying to dispel a weird feeling. He was grimacing slightly.

He gave a full body shudder, and before Sanji's eyes, wounds Zoro had gotten during his time as a zombie that had never _quite_ healed began to close, starting with the bite wound, which rapidly sealed shut and became nothing more than a very faint scar, barely visible against Zoro's skin.

The same happened to Zoro's left eye, roughly a minute or two later. He squeezed the eye shut, and the cut sealed shut, becoming what looked to be a several years old scar. He then opened the eye again, and it looked… Better. No longer a filmy, unseeing white. He squeezed it back shut with a grimace. Sanji supposed it must be really odd to be able to see out of an eye that had been unusable for months.

After about an hour of letting the cure work, Chopper took a couple blood and tissue samples from Zoro to look them over.

He emerged again, several hours later, beaming.

"Zoro is officially cured!!!" He announced to everyone in the camp, "There's no trace of the virus left in his system!! The cure is a success!!!"

A massive cheer went up across the camp, and Luffy loudly declared a party, to which everyone responded with another loud cheer of agreement.

\-----

As the party wound down, Zoro and Sanji were sitting next to one another in a relatively quiet and private location, sides pressed together.

"I'm glad you're back." Sanji said softly, leaning into Zoro's side and resting his head on the other man's shoulder.

"S'good to _be_ back." Zoro admitted, just as softly, resting his head atop Sanji's. His hand found its way to Sanji's, and shyly came to rest atop it, curling around it. He was so glad he could finally think clearly again, without the overpowering Hunger that had been with him every day he'd been a zombie. He was so glad he could experience this moment fully.

Sanji laced their fingers together, smiling slightly.

"I'm glad you're back, because it means I get to tell you something I should've said before I'd lost you." He said, pulling back slightly to look Zoro in the eye, "I love you, Zoro."

Zoro's jaw went slack, falling open slightly as his eyes went wide.

Sanji couldn't really tell in the darkness, but he'd bet money that the swordsman's face had gone very, very red.

"R-really?" He asked, stuttering slightly.

"Really." Sanji confirmed with a nod.

The smile that spread across Zoro's face was _breathtakingly_ beautiful, even in the low light.

"I love you too, Sanji." He said, sounding so _happy_ that Sanji couldn't help grinning back just as widely.

They leaned in for a kiss, and smacked their noses together, immediately recoiling.

They shared a look, laughed, and tried again, this time more carefully.

This time, they succeeded, lips pressing together in a slow, meaningful kiss. Zoro's free hand rose to thread through Sanji's hair while Sanji's free hand rose to rest between Zoro's shoulder blades.

They pulled back, just enough to rest their foreheads together, grinning delightedly. Both of them felt like their hearts were about to burst with joy.

They stayed there for the rest of the night, holding one another close and reveling in the knowledge that their feelings were requited.

\-----

In the following days, the Strawhats created and started spreading the cure to all the nearby zombies, curing people en masse. Within a month, the city was cured, and with the additional help from both survivors and former zombies alike, they managed to spread the cure throughout the country, and eventually the virus was eradicated entirely, worldwide.

There were many, _many_ scars left behind by the pandemic, but those that remained were able to rebuild.

As for Zoro, Sanji, and the other Strawhats? They continued living freely, wandering around, getting into - and back out of - trouble, and having adventures.

They were happy.

**Author's Note:**

> This AU was a joy to write, and there might be little snippets and oneshots set in this AU at some point in the future!
> 
> And Happy Holidays, y'all!! Hope you all stay safe and have a restful, pleasant holiday season!!! <3


End file.
